Some of you might remember that Formula E was about to start a partnership with Kinetik in order to launch a new global race series for self-driving electric cars.

Well, turns out they did it.

The event was called the ROBORACE —the name is a perfect match for this type of event, isn’t it?—and by the end of this year we’ll see 10 teams with a total of 20 indigenous electric cars competing for the prize.

Sounds quite exciting, isn’t it?

Well, it is bound to start being even more exciting after you’ll hear that we have renderings of one these top-notch vehicles –FYI, Roborace vehicle was designed by the Daniel Simon (the author of Tron car).

So, let’s not waste any second and take a look-see at them.

Roborace autonomous racing concept is an amazing futuristic creation that is unlike anything ever seen on a race track before.

A few words about practicality of Simon’s design

The lack of a need for a driver's cockpit has dropped barriers and opened up design freedom, allowing Simon and his team to follow aerodynamics even more closely than on the typical race car.

The result, dubbed the Robocar, looks like a streamliner-style fuselage with four massive nostril-fenders optimizing downforce. Those large intakes allow air to flow straight through the body work over top the open floor.

"It was important to us that we generate substantial downforce without unnecessary parts cluttering the car to maintain a clean and iconic look," Simon explained.

"This is largely made possible by using the floor as the main aerodynamic device and we are currently developing active body parts that are more organic and seamless than solutions today."

Extracts from Simon’s autobiography

⁪

⁪

Daniel Simon has perhaps the perfect blend of fantasy and reality automotive design experience for the task of creating a new genre of race car. After obtaining a degree in automotive design, he spent several years at Volkswagen working on concept cars and then transitioned into a position at Bugatti, where he worked on Veyron special editions and conceptual Veyron successors. After that, Simon went Hollywood, designing fictional vehicles for feature films, including the iconic Tron Light Cycle in Tron: Legacy. He's also styled F1 racing liveries and done the design work on the Lotus C-01 motorcycle. So he's worked around some of the world's most powerful cars and spent plenty of time thinking completely outside of conventional reality.

“We're living in a time where the once-separated worlds of the automobile and artificial intelligence collide with unstoppable force," said Simon.

"My goal was to create a vehicle that takes full advantage of the unusual opportunities of having no driver without ever compromising on beauty. Racing engineers and aerodynamicists have worked with me from the beginning to strike that balance. “

“The Roborace is as much about competition as it is entertainment. Therefore – and quite unusual in today's racing world – beauty was very high on our agenda and we work hard to merge the best performance with stunning styling."

Vehicle’s brains

Roborace racing car will be powered by Nvidia Drive PX2 --extremely fast computer that can precede millions of operations per second.

Daniel Simon, chief design officer at Robocar, said: “we’re living in a time where the once separated worlds of the automobile and artificial intelligence collide with unstoppable force.”

“It’s fantastic to be part of this journey; it triggers all my big passions – motor racing, design and advanced technologies. My goal was to create a vehicle that takes full advantage of the unusual opportunities of having no driver without ever compromising on beauty. Racing engineers and aerodynamicists have worked with me from the beginning to strike that balance. The Roborace is as much about competition as it is entertainment. Therefore – and quite unusual in today’s racing world – beauty was very high on our agenda and we work hard to merge the best performance with stunning styling. It was important to us that we generate substantial downforce without unnecessary parts cluttering the car to maintain a clean and iconic look. This is largely made possible by using the floor as the main aerodynamic device and we are currently developing active body parts that are more organic and seamless than solutions today. I am excited to be part of the daring team of people who are making this happen.”

“The design is the work of the newly-appointed chief design officer Daniel Simon. Simon, who is renowned for his work on Hollywood sci-fi blockbusters such as Tron: Legacy and Oblivion, set out to create something that took full advantage of being the first-ever racing car that doesn’t need to accommodate a driver.”

“We are honoured to have Daniel working with us on this project as chief design officer. His passion and experience are undeniable and I believe it’s already set to be one of the most iconic vehicles in automotive history. We nicknamed the competition the ‘global championship of intelligence’ as an open challenge to the world’s smartest minds, so its only fitting that the car should be one of the smartest ever to be made, thanks to Daniel it may also be the most beautiful car ever to touch a road surface. It’s gaming, motorsport, technology and entertainment all rolled into one. I passionately believe that the future of cars is about software; driverless, electric and connected and Roborace will help to make that a reality.”

Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag added:

“Today is an historic day for motorsport, and the car industry in general. This first image of the Robocar, designed by Daniel Simon, represents a vision of what cars will be, a vision of our future. In Formula E we are proud to promote, together with pioneers like Denis Sverdlov and Daniel Simon, a revolution in the world of motorsport, a project that will change the future of mobility.”

⁪

The first Roborace shows are expected to take place during the 2016/2017 Formula E season.